POLICE IN GERMAN = "POLITZIA"

 

Well, close. It's actually polizei. The phrase, though, gets lost in translation.

 

So how long are you allowed to run the "funny" NATO plates before you "must" get the car registered in the US? Someone here in town recently shipped Nissan sports car of some sort, and the first thing I noticed were the NATO plates on it, and they started with HK just like yours. So obviously, an American who was out in Germany.

Your first aid kit looks a little bit different than mine (mine is an L-shape). I got mine in Switzerland, so that might be the difference. The warning triangle and bracket are the same.

Looks like your under-bonnet labels are normal US-issue, as they are the same as what my '04 has.

Did your car come pre-wired for the rear fog light? If so, did you manage to get it activated prior to leaving Germany?

Thanks for posting the comparison pics!

 

Uh, yeah. That's a question I'm just not asking. I don't want to know. I am in the US for a while, but not officially. My car and I are still assigned to Germany, not to any place here. So, I'm sticking to the story that my car is suppose to be registered there. We'll see how long that flies.

The car did come pre-wired. No toggle switch on the dash, though. And I have not dropped the insane amounts of money to replace the panel of switches. Not sure if I ever will. Wiring is all there, just no switch.

 

It's too bad they didn't let you keep the long plates. I know of a couple people stationed here who milked the system as long as they could - they ran the Euro plates for quite some time (1yr +), and none of the law enforcement people even batted an eye. I'm sure I would do the same, as I absolutely hate the look of US-sized plates.

My car was prewired as well. Fortunately, the prewired cars are rather easy to set up for rear fogs. Just add the switch bank, and have a dealer (or someone w/ the scan tool) "activate" the rear fogs.

I had a bunch of warranty work done on my car when I first purchased it, and somehow the switch bank was added to my car "N/C", though I did have to pay .5hr to activate the lights. Again, one of those don't ask, don't tell sort of things, I guess.

I see the switch banks on the marketplace going for reasonable prices from time to time. You may want to keep an eye out for one, so your 'ring runner can be complete.

 

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Yeah i checked mine later at home, i have some of the same things, arent we just awesome? We can compare our funny words and symbols friday

 

abu-

where'd you end up mounting your OCC? BTW, here in Nederlands, I was required to buy the fog light, thus the complete panel and they only offered the full Euro-plate. In any case, the full panel is much cheaper from NAM or eBay than the dealership. Good luck!

Cheers!!

 

Man, the OCC is still sitting there in the corner. Ain't done squat with it!

 

My MINI is somewhere between Germany and Boston (may be in Boston). Anyway, I was able to get a pair of the long USA plates on both cars. We are required to turn the German ones over (they are the real German plates) as they belong to the German government. However, they issue the NATO plates as temp ones that are good for only three months. I think that mine will be expired before the dang cars even get here. :(

 

Abu, I thought your fog light worked? I got that when I ordered mine...

 

Cool that you got the long plates, bummer that they're for so short of a time. At least they're yours to keep.

And no, I just haven't finished with a switch for it. Someday. eBay, maybe.

 

Ah!... Yeah, I had a long discussion with the guys at vehicle reg. for the plates. Apparently my MINI was two months out for an inspection and they would not allow me to get temps as they were for three months. OK, i said, can I go get the car inspected and get the temp plates. He told me NO as I had to be within a month to get it inspected. I then gave him a choice. I could either walk out of here with temp USA plates (the cars were leaving the next day) or I could keep the German plates as I was shipping the cars via private transport. As you can see, I got the plates. :p

How have you been doing? Any chances of heading towards Cape Cod?

 

Any chance you could post a pic of the long USA plates? I've only seen the "funny" plates that abuzavi is sportin' on his car now.

 

Oh, his are funny, too. Look like the regular long German ones, just that the coding on them looks like Gibberish (if you're German).

No chance on a run that far north, Will. Got word this weekend that, yes, new unit has indeed sent a written request, asking that I be paroled a full 5 weeks early. Wow. Saw a copy of it today, too. While 5 weeks probably won't happen (probably), 10 to 1 says they boot me out of here some kind of early. I'm going to spend Labor Day on that little Dragon thing, mostly for the novelty of it. I mean, after the Alps, and the Ring, and the Schwarzwald and all that -- it's like cheese on a Ritz cracker after a nice dinner out. And then I'll need to get Tess onto some kind of something headed to HI.

 

Once customs is done driving my MINI around the lot and the deliver it, sure.

 

Ugh, well if you guys are ever up this way we have a place on the Cape that you can crash.

As for the Dragon, have fun!

 

What all does customs do when your car arrives stateside? I figured they wouldn't even bat an eye being that it's a US-spec MINI...

It must be driving you nuts being w/o your MINI.

 

Fuchen Elitist.

 

LOL Euro Snob for sure....

 

It is driving me nuts as they have our house hold items as well. We are living on lawn furniture right now. I'm not sure what all happens at the customs office but they can open the container and empty it all out if they wanted to make sure we aren't sneaking anything in. That being said, I do miss my baby.....

 

Oh, and you don't look down on non-Dragonites.

Please.



Talk to the hand, Paul, talk to the hand....

And yes, that's a hand waving at you from the Swiss Alps.

Oh, need video?

 

I never look down upon my disadvantaged MINI brethren. Never.

Unless they're dooooooshbags. That's another matter.


BTW, my favorite video ever. I cried the first time I watched it.
I'm crying again now, actually. Because I realized I'm going out of my way to show hospitality to the putz who produced it.

I'm so pathetic.

 

It is better than midget ****, isn't it?

wait -- did you just call me a

 

I had a good reisen to.

 

Glad to see that you have reisen to the occasion. I really wish I would have made that trip. :(